Lively Conditions For London Trophy

Lively conditions greeted the sailors of the Gunfleet Sailing Club when they ventured out last Sunday 15 May to take part in the race for the London Trophy.  This race, exclusively for the fast and medium handicap boats, saw ten craft take part in a fresh westerly wind.  Just prior to the start Eddie White capsized in his Solution and decided to retire.  Jockeying at the start line it was Paul Davis that was first away in his Solution, followed closely by Simon Clarke, also in a Solution; the two RS600’s close on their tails.  The first leg turned out to be a beat to the St. Michael’s buoy against a strong ebbing tide, giving an immediate choice to the competitors; tack close inshore to lessen the negativity of the tide but lose some of the offshore wind or head further out to sea for more wind but be forced to fight a stronger adverse tide.  The fleet was divided and by the first mark there was no clear advantage from either course of action.  From St. Michaels it was a dead run out to the Seaward buoy and as Yvonne Gough gybed her Laser round the offshore mark she capsized but righted her boat unassisted and continued on her way, picking off her competitors one by one.  There then followed a beat back inshore to the Eastcliff buoy before a reach up to the Kingscliff mark which required competitors to hook around the AWS buoy en route, and finally there was a beat back to the line.  At the end of the first lap Clarke had got a small lead, closely followed by Ken Potts in his RS600, with Clarke pushing his boat hard to avoid losing top spot.  The second lap proved uneventful but during the third lap Simon Mathewson was forced to retire in his Vortex when he capsized and the tiller extension broke.  As the rest of the fleet cut through the finishing line it was evident that Clarke had managed to hang onto his lead, so claiming the London Trophy for 2011.  
 
Results: London Trophy
1. Solution – Simon Clarke
2. RS600 – Ken Potts
3. RS600 – Kelvin Morton